Box Score
Mell Adams hit a tenth-inning, two-run home run to lift No. 25-ranked North Carolina to a come-from-behind 9-7 win over High Point Wednesday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium.
HPU took a 7-6 lead into the bottom of the ninth, but the Tar Heels (10-3) rallied to force extra innings and got Adams' dramatic homer off Mark Shorey to claim their sixth-straight win.
The hard-luck Panthers (3-13) out-hit the Tar Heels by an 11-10 count, but yielded the eventual winning runs in the ninth inning or later for the fifth time this season.
Robert Woodard (1-1) earned the win in relief for the Tar Heels, while Shorey (1-4) took the loss for HPU.
Josh Cotten and Chris Ramirez each went 3-for-4 at the plate for the Panthers, while Cotten cranked a solo home run in the top of then 8th to give HPU a 7-5 advantage.
The loss spoiled a stellar performance on the mound by High Point starter Matt Kniginyzky, who allowed three earned runs and five hits in seven innings of work against the No. 25 team in the country.
Trailing 2-1, the Panthers took a 4-2 lead with three runs in the top of the 2nd. Josh Doane doubled and advanced to third on Nate Hawley's single, and after UNC starter Scott Manshack struck out Anthony Bell, Rey Rojas walked, setting up Matt Keever's three-run double which cleared the bases.
After Carolina scored single runs in the 2nd and 4th to tie the score at 4-4, the Panthers rallied for a pair in the 5th and a 6-4 advantage. Chris Draska's two-run single scored Keever and Ramirez.
Cotten's solo homer off Kevin Brower in the 8th gave HPU a 7-5 cushion before the Heels began to chip away. UNC scraped together an unearned run in the bottom of the 8th, and got the tying run in the 9th on Chris Iannetta's single which scored Greg Mangum and forced extra innings.
Ramirez led off the top of the 10th with a double, but was stranded at second after Woodard retired three straight Panthers. Bryan Steed then drew a lead-off walk in the bottom of the frame off Shorey before Adams homered to give the Heels a 9-7 win.
High Point visits Charlotte for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday afternoon (4:00 pm). The Panthers' next home game is their Big South Conference opener on Friday, Mar. 19, at Erath Field against Radford.
